This invention relates to a modular structural element. The invention provides a structural element which can serve as a floor, wall or ceiling and which simultaneously provides both a covering to the floor, wall or ceiling while at the same time providing structural integrity, rigidity and support to the building. Rather than merely being supported by the structure of the building, the modular structural element adds structural integrity and rigidity to the building. The structural element may be adhered to the supporting structure, for example, floor or ceiling joists or wall studs, by nails, screws, bolts or adhesive. The particular type of fastener depends on where the structural element is used. For example, construction adhesive may be suitable for securing the structural elements to a floor, whereas nails or screws or bolts will likely be used when the structural elements are secured to wall or ceilings. The structural elements may be held down by their own weight to form a floor or part of a floor without adhering the elements to any supporting structure, i.e., a freefloating floor.
The modular structural panels can also be used to construct doors, table tops, counter tops, furniture or any other structure having the need for a cladded surface with substantial structural integrity.
The preferred embodiments of the invention disclosed in this application include modular panels which have a decorative stone surface layer which provide an expensive elegant appearance to the covered area. The modular panels make use of stone products, or stone products which would otherwise be waste products of other stone production techniques, and therefore provide economy as well as elegance.
Traditional methods of producing stone tiles start with a dimensional block of stone from a quarry. Strips of stone are cut from the length of the block with a block cutter. The strips are typically as long as the block and thick as the required tile. The depth of the cut or width of the strip is approximately the width of the required tile, for example, 12" or 16". The strips are squared and polished and then cut into tiles of a required size. The edges are then beveled and grooves cut into the bottom surface of the tiles to provide greater surface area between the bottom surface of the tile and the mounting adhesive. The tiles are then washed, dried and buffed before final inspection and packaging.
The production process has resulted in substantial waste as larger and larger blocks are demanded for larger format slabs and strips. Much beautiful material is reduced to waste or cut up into smaller or irregular formats. This substantially increases the cost of the material.
The high cost of these materials and the installation thereof has thus far prevented the stone industry from penetrating the residential market with products which are affordable enough to be sold in home improvement centers and other mass market outlets.
The construction and assembly principles also permit use of the invention with surface layers such as ceramic, glass, mirrors, wood and even textile and paper coverings.
In the commercial building industry, when wall cladding of marble, granite or other similar material is required, relatively thick slabs of the cladding material are hung from a supporting substructure by means of elaborate hanging systems. Such hanging systems are far too elaborate and costly for the residential building industry.
The conventional practice in the residential building industry is to erect a framework structure of timber or aluminum in order to secure plywood or other substrate panels to the framework structure, commonly referred to as "drywalling." The panelled areas are then sealed and customarily a secondary panel is added in order to prevent cracking of the tiles used in the cladding process. While less costly than hanging systems that are used in the commercial building industry, it requires the involvement of at least two craftsmen, namely a carpenter to erect the framework structure plywood and carry out the preparatory work, and a tiler or stone mason to apply the cladding. Installation is costly, cumbersome and results in the creation of significant amounts of dust and other construction debris which must be cleaned up and carried off.
Less conventional, but accepted, methods are to incorporate timber into a cast concrete structure or to attach timber to an existing brick structure in order to secure plywood or other panels to the timber prior to applying the cladding materials.